They walked in silence down the jetway, Nathan restraining both his tears and his words. Paige was too shocked and confused to even attempt to speak.
A bottle-blonde stewardess, whose makeup could only turn the clock back on so many years, greeted them as they boarded the plane. Paige said nothing and Nathan merely nodded as they passed the woman.
Paige followed Nathan down the aisle. He stowed her carry-on in the overhead compartment before stepping back and allowing her to take the window seat even though her ticket had been for the aisle. He slipped in next to her. Whether or not she was surprised that they were seated together, Nathan couldn't tell. He stowed his computer under the seat in front of him and then followed Paige's lead and buckled his seatbelt.
Paige was aware of the noise around her but didn't truly hear any of it. She knew that a moment or so ago the lead flight attendant had asked for their attention and was even now doing her little ritual of pointing at the various exits and giving instructions on what to do incase of an emergency. Paige was sure that she was not the only person who wasn't listening. She stared out the window. The plane slowly backed away from the terminal, circled around to the runway and held position for a few moments. The captain came on the intercom and told them that they had been cleared for take off and instructed the crew to take their positions.
A few moments later Nathan was forced back in his seat as the plane quickly accelerated. Paige was still looking away from him, staring out the window. He was certain, despite the inner turmoil she no doubt was feeling, that there was likely a slip of a smile upon her face. And there was.
She watched as the ground moved further and further away. Trees and houses shrunk, tiny cars moved along the streets and highways below and then disappeared completely. She shook her head and wondered about all the pools she always saw during take off. Why was it that it seemed so many people who lived near airports had pools?
Nathan knew exactly what she was thinking, but he remained quiet. He knew she was likely using her takeoff ritual to calm herself, to take a mental breather from the last half hour. He wasn't about to take that from her.
The plane banked, but continued to climb. The captain came on the intercom and once again welcomed them on board. He gave them a brief run down of the current conditions in San Diego and then went on to give them their estimated flight time, announcing that they had a good tailwind and that they should arrive a little ahead of schedule.
The sound of the captain's voice was a bit muffled. Nathan pinched his nose and then took a deep breath and popped his ears. The captain's voice instantly became clearer. He looked around and noticed other people popping their ears as well.
Paige picked up her purse and began to rummage in it. He looked over at her, but she continued to avoid looking in his direction. She swore under her breath and Nathan stifled the urge to both laugh and cry. Instead, he slipped his hand into his jacket pocket, then leaned over and offered her the pack of gum he'd bought earlier.
Paige shivered and looked at the pack of gum and then at him. Nathan did his best to keep his face calm, expressionless. She closed her eyes for a moment, then snatched the gum from his hand. She opened her mouth to thank him, but no sound came out. He understood just the same, giving a nod to her silent thanks.
Nathan looked away, afraid of losing control. He wanted nothing more than to grab her, to hold her tight. He wanted to cry in her arms, to tell her how much he'd missed her. To tell her how much he still loved her, would always love her. Where she had been and what had happened, those questions could be dealt with later.
Paige opened the gum, carefully tearing the designated strip around the top of the packet. She slipped two pieces out, it was always two pieces, and then slipped the rest of the pack into her purse. She didn't give a thought to returning the gum, it was obvious that he had bought it for her. She slipped the pieces of gum into her mouth and on the tenth chew, like clockwork, her ears popped. She spit the gum out into the wrapper and then turned her attention to Nathan.
"Do you have any idea how disconcerting that was?"
He opened his mouth, but she continued on.
"And I do not mean just the gum. Back there at the gate. My ticket, how did you know?"
Nathan swallowed and took a slow deep breath. "I know," he said, "because that is what you have always done for as long as I have known you."
"You have only known me for like forty minutes."
"That isn't true, Pai..."
"Yes," she insisted in a low hiss. "Yes, it is. I do not know you. Until you came up to me in the terminal I had never seen you before in my life."
"You saw the..."
"Yes, the pictures. They do in fact look like me. I can't deny that. But I am telling you that they can't possibly be of me. I do not know you. I never met you, let alone married you. I do not know who that woman in those pictures is, but it is not me."